Fabric and method of making the same

ABSTRACT

A method of making a multi-ply fabric. The fabric has a top side and a back side with the top side being adjacent to an external environment when the fabric is in use and the back side being adjacent to an object to be cooled when the fabric is in use. The method includes providing a top yarn to form the top side of the fabric and providing a bottom yarn to form the back side of the fabric, with the bottom yarn having a higher SA:V than the top yarn. The two yarns are combined together to form a single fabric, with the top yarn looping through bobbins in the bottom yarn and the bottom yarn looping through bobbins in the top yarn so that the top and bottom yarns are linked and networked to-one-another.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

This patent document contains material which is subject to copyrightprotection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimilereproduction by anyone of this patent document as it appears in thePatent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwisereserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of fabrics and a method of making themulti-ply fabric. More specifically, the present invention relates to afabric that is made to regulate moisture dispersal therethrough toenhance its ability to provide evaporative cooling. Even morespecifically, the present invention relates to a multi-ply fabric thatbecomes cool when activated by liquid and remains cool for an extendedperiod of time thereafter, and a method of making the same fabric. Bycontrolling the evaporation process and slowing down the evaporationprocess, the fabric achieves a lower core temperature which relates thecooler temperature to the object.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Enjoying a hot sunny day in the outdoors is sometimes difficult when theoutside temperature exceeds high levels. In addition outdoor activitiesmay become unpleasant and or impossible to enjoy or bear if thetemperature is too high. In these situations, people may choose toremain indoors in a cool or air conditioned environment to escape theextreme heat. Athletes even explore different times in the day in whichto train in order to escape oppressive heat.

Although these solutions may be an option for some, they are however,impractical for those who must remain outside, such as a constructionworkers, public workers, police or professional athletes. A performancefabric may be the answer for some and a necessity to others.

People have adopted a variety of approaches for cooling themselvesoutdoors. These efforts are largely ineffective and are not completelysatisfying. For example, many people who are exposed to oppressive heatcool themselves by soaking one of the many existing fabric materials,such as a cotton facecloth or a towel, for example, in cold water andholding it against their skin. While this technique is effective, it iseffective only for a very short period of time, perhaps a minute or so.The downfall of this technique is that an individual's body heat and theambient temperature rapidly warm the initially cold water to the pointthat the water is no longer cooling against the skin. The most commonlyemployed “solution” to this problem, is to repeatedly saturate the towelor facecloth in cold water as needed. This technique is not satisfyingbecause it requires much effort, and is not practical because itrequires the individual to constantly be near a cold water source.

Other cooling mechanisms employed by individuals have met with limitedsuccess. For example, ice is commonly used but its availability in anygiven situation may be limited, its formation can be costly and itsability to conform to an area of the body is severely limited.Alcohol-dipped towels are not widely used, although they tend to be afocus of professional sports teams' cooling solutions. However, alcoholdries the skin and can lead to rashes and other skin irritations. Phasechange materials are chemicals that absorb and transfer heat throughchanges between solid and liquid state. The chemicals employed for thatpurpose can be hazardous and ineffective if their carriers are breached.Simple wicking material, while keeping you dry, does little to cool thebody down.

Presently, there is no effective non-chemical and safe means to properlycool a body in order to deal with heat exhaustion. The use oftraditional means is impractical and cumbersome and therefore, of littlevalue.

Consequently, there needs to be a better fabric to regulate temperaturethat is inexpensive and easy to adopt. It would be advantageous for athermal regulating fabric to control the rate of perspirationevaporation while conforming to person's body shape, such as around theneck, for example. Evaporative cooling is the natural effect of moistureescaping into the atmosphere at will. The ability to regulate the rateof moisture dispersal and create one's personal cooling environment foran expanded period of time in a fabric, is such an answer to thisdilemma. It would be desirable for a fabric that can be used like normalevery day wear which can provide comfort and effectiveness to the heatcontrol.

A solution is finally created that is easy to use, comfortable to wear,attractive, convenient, flexible, and inexpensive. The fabric of thepresent invention remains cool for an extended period of time when heldagainst the body.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the descriptionthat follows.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The mentioned fabric is a creation of blends of multiple yarns toproduce a cooling fabric. The fabric utilizes one liquid conductive yarnand one evaporating yarn.

The cooling performing is created by the existence of fluids and airmovement. When the fabric is moistened and air motion is present, thecontrolled evaporation lowers the core temperature of the fabricdrastically and maintains it lower as long as both events remainpresent.

A method of making a multi-ply fabric. The fabric has a top side and aback side with the top side being adjacent to an external environmentwhen the fabric is in use and the back side being adjacent to an objectto be cooled when the fabric is in use. The method includes providing atop yarn to form the top side of the fabric and providing a bottom yarnto form the back side of the fabric, with the bottom yarn having ahigher SA:V than the top yarn. The two yarns are combined together toform a single fabric, with the top yarn looping through bobbins in thebottom yarn and the bottom yarn looping through bobbins in the top yarnso that the top and bottom yarns are linked and networkedto-one-another.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a convenient,easy-to-use, flexible fabric that remains cool for an extended period oftime when contacted against an object to be cooled, such as a person'sskin or an inanimate object for which temperature maintenance isdesirable, and a method of making the fabric.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a moisturemanagement fabric that can assist in maintaining a sustained thermalcondition of an object for an extended period of time with minimaleffort and no temperature-regulating chemicals in the fabric.

Further, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method ofmanufacturing such a fabric with such characteristics. The fabric of thepresent invention is formed by weaving or knitting a plurality of yamswith differing surface area to volume ratios. The composition of thefabric may be varied in that it may be formed of a plurality ofmaterials. The materials are selected to provide certain characteristicsthrough the fabric. The portion of the fabric to be positioned adjacentthe object to be cooled (or maintained at a defined thermal condition),that is, the back side of the fabric, is configured to transfer liquidaway from the object. The portion of the fabric on the side away fromthe object, that is, the front side of the fabric, is configured tocause the transfer of liquid out of the fabric to occur at a rate thatis slower than the rate at which the liquid transfers away from theobject. For example, the back side is or includes a hydrophobic fibermaterial and the front side is or includes a hydrophilic fiber material.In an embodiment of the invention, the back side material may bepolyester and the front side material may be nylon or combined withpolyester to form a homogeneous blend. Other materials used to make theyarns of the fabric may be employed. Further, supplemental materials maybe incorporated into the fabric for supplemental purposes. For example,anti-static, anti-microbial and/or anti-odor additive materials may beused. One example of such an additive is a silver thread suitable forits anti-microbial functionality.

After the fabric is formed by weaving or knitting, the fabric optionallymay undergo one or more treatments, such as scouring and bleachingtreatments, for example. These treatments may be performed, for example,for the purpose of preparing the fabric for dyeing and/or for printingone or more designs onto the fabric.

After undergoing any optional treatments, including scouring, bleaching,dyeing and/or printing, for example, the fabric is brushed or peached tobreak some of the yams and may be sheared to adjust the pile height ofthe yams to a selectable value. For purposes of the description of thepresent invention, the process of making the fabric will be described asincluding the step of peaching, which word will be used to refer tobrushing or peaching as understood by those of ordinary skill in theart. The fabric is mechanically modified, such as by peaching, in amanner that results in fibers on the front side of the fabric beingpulled toward the back of the fabric. This is achieved, for example, bypeaching the fabric on its back side prior to performing any peaching onits front side.

Present manufacturing processes that include a peaching step perform thepeaching on the front side only, or at least do so first, therebyminimizing the ability to pull fibers on the front side toward the backside of the fabric. Instead, the peaching on the front side is done tocreate texture, pile and/or “hand” on the front side of the fabric, suchas to enhance the insulation characteristics of the fabric with littleor no regard for the condition of the back side or establishing acooling functionality.

The peaching step of the manufacturing method of the present inventioninvolves peaching both the front and back sides of the fabric multipletimes each to create a homogeneous blend of the different materials.That is, at least portions of the fiber material of the front side andthe fiber material of the back side become entangled with one another.These homogeneous blends of materials having dissimilar characteristicsmaintain an atmosphere that is conducive to maximizing the uniqueness ofthe individual fiber properties and thus control/regulate the rate ofevaporation.

The fabric of the present invention is configured to facilitate liquidremoval from the surface of the object, store liquid therein, and slowthe evaporation of liquid away from the fabric to the atmosphere. Anytype of prior commercially available fabric designed to cool is limitedto causing rapid transport of liquid away from the skin and equallyrapid transport of that liquid completely out of the fabric. In otherwords, prior cooling fabrics using no chemicals to induce coolingartificially, are configured to get liquid away from the skin as soon aspossible and nothing more. This may achieve short term cooling, butfails to enable longer term cooling, particularly for individuals whoare not exercising (and thereby generating their own moisture to produceevaporative cooling). The fabric of the present invention utilizes thecooling effect available from retained liquid. By withdrawing thatliquid, at what is likely to be its highest temperature at the surfaceof the object, from the surface, storing the liquid within the fabric sothat it cools down to become a more effective evaporative agent than itwas when at a higher temperature, and restricting the ability of thatcooled liquid to quickly evaporate from the atmosphere-side of thefabric, ensures a substantially longer cooling capability than has beenmade available.

The present invention is directed to creating in a fabric a controlledenvironment that maximizes wicking where desired and retention of liquidmolecules within the fabric structure. The invention utilizesyams/fibers organized in the manner described herein to maximize fabrictraits that interfere with the normal process of evaporation away fromthe fabric. These traits include diverting liquid from the surfaces ofindividual fibers near the object to the interior of the fabric andslowing the rate of evaporation from the fabric. As used herein,“evaporation” means the change of a liquid into a vapor at a temperaturebelow the boiling point of that liquid; a condition that exists at thesurface of the liquid, where molecules with the highest kinetic energyare able to escape, when this happens, the average kinetic energy of theliquid is lowered, and its temperature decreases. With that in mind, thepresent invention is configured to facilitate evaporation within thefabric as much as possible to aid in the cooling of the object whilealso slowing evaporation of liquid from the fabric itself. Fibercharacteristics, density and arrangement all have a hand in regulatingevaporation rate. The present invention involves fiber selection,positioning and physical modification to achieved desired evaporationcontrol.

When in its finished form, the fabric of the present invention may beused for anyone or more of a large variety of purposes and to partiallyor wholly form anyone or more of a large variety of products, including,but not limited to, those purposes and products that are later describedherein.

The cooling properties of the fabric of the present invention, which mayinclude maintaining an object at a selected temperature for a period oftime, makes it amenable to being used in a large variety ofapplications. For example, the fabric may be used to wholly or partiallyform a plurality of apparel and personal products that can be worn orotherwise used by a person in the hot sun or while exercising to keepcool. As another example, the fabric may be used to wholly or partiallyform a plurality of skin-associated medical health products that can beused to keep a patient cool. The fabric of the present inventionsatisfies this need because it becomes cool at its interface with thepatient's skin by wicking away any “warm” liquid (e.g., perspiration).

The fabric may also be used to keep inanimate objects cooled, such asmaterials to be transported, for example. The fabric created through thecombination of materials and manufacturing steps described providesmaximum wicking and absorption where needed near the object, andmoisture storage characteristics that allow for evaporative coolingwithin the fabric and reducing the rate of normal liquid evaporationaway from the fabric.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will beapparent upon review of the following detailed description, theaccompanying drawings and the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The preferred embodiment of the invention will be described by referenceto the drawings thereof in which:

FIG. 1 is a close-up cross-sectional view of a prior art Y+O yarn;

FIG. 2 is a close-up cross-sectional view of a prior art wicking yarnwith increased surface area for enhanced wicking;

FIG. 3 illustrates the movement of body heat and moisture moving fromthe human body to the environment through the fabric of the presentinvention

FIG. 4 illustrates the movement of body heat and moisture moving fromthe human body to the environment through the fabric of the presentinvention

FIG. 5. illustrates the movement of moisture and heat transferring fromthe human body to the environment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is perspective view of a a cross fiber of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a close up view of the fabric of the present invention showinga general form of the fabric stitching pattern including plurality ofwrap yarns and single weft yarns;

FIG. 8 is a demonstration of the pattern construction form andarrangement of the yarns in perspective to a knitting machine;

FIG. 9 is a close up view of the fabric of the present invention showinga general form of the front of a single jersey knit face stitchingpattern;

FIG. 10 is a close up view of the fabric of the present inventionshowing a general form of the back of a single jersey knit facestitching pattern;

FIG. 11 is a close up view of the fabric of the present inventionshowing a general form of the stitching of a type of yarn that will becombined in order to generate a final fabric;

FIG. 12 is a close up view of the fabric of the present inventionshowing a general form of the stitching of another type of yarn thatwill be combined in order to generate a final fabric;

FIG. 13. is a close up view of the fabric of the present inventionshowing a general form of the combination of the two types of yarnscombined in order to accelerate the hydraulic abilities knit facestitching pattern;

FIG. 14 is a close up view of the fabric of the present inventionshowing the positioning of the bobbins and sinker on a knit machine inorder to conduct the fabrication of the fabric;

FIG. 15 is a sample of the vertical wicking benefits of a yarn utilizedin the present invention in comparison to other types of yarns;

FIG. 16 is a sample of the diffusion area that a yarn utilized in thepresent invention in comparison to other types of yarns; and

FIG. 17 is a sample of the specification of the fabric utilized in thepresent invention in comparison to other types of yarns.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Objects with higher surface area to volume ratios (SA:V) move liquidmolecules at a faster rate than objects with lower SA:V. This explainswhy fine salt crystals dissolve quicker in water than coarse saltcrystals for any given mass. This occurs because objects with higherSA:V allow molecules to diffuse more quickly and easily than objectswith lower SA:V. For this very reason, our lungs have a cluster ofporous arteries and fish gills have numerous spikes in order to movemolecules of air.

An increase in SA:V results in a corresponding increase in exposure tothe environment. More contact with an environment increases the rate ofabsorption or loss of water. Objects with higher SA:V are also effectiveat regulating temperatures in unfavorable environments; for example,cacti have numerous pines and lizards spread their gills in order todissipate heat. The higher the

SA:V an object possesses the faster a particle (including air or water)responds to change in environmental condition such as temperature ormoisture.

When we apply this phenomena to textile yarn, a yarn with an intricatecross section has a higher SA:V than an ordinary spherical round yarn.An intricately cross sectioned yarn, therefore, moves moisture muchfaster than a spherical yarn or hollow yarn. A cross sectioned or Ysection yarn diffuses water from a person's skin into the air at a veryhigh rate. Textiles made from these yarns are typically referred to aswicking yarn as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIGS. 3 to 5 generally illustrate the workings of the present fabric.Advantageously, the present invention employs a combination of two yarnsin constructing a singular fabric. The fabric is created by eitherknitting or weaving two yarns with differing SA:V. Doing so, regulatesthe rate of water flow within the fabric and controls the rate ofevaporation of a person's perspiration. By creating a fabric with twoyarns of differing SA:V, the fabric cools a person's skin more rapidlythan traditional wicking fabric.

The two yarn system of the present invention combines a yarn with higherSA:V with a yarn with a lower SA:V. The fabric is constructed so thatthe yarn with the higher SA:V is situated next to a person's skin(bottom yarn) and the yarn with the lower SA:V (top yarn) is placed overthe fabric with the higher SA:V, and is exposed to the externalenvironment as best illustrated in FIG. 7. The bottom yarn is placednext to a person's skin so that water molecules (sweat) are absorbed ata fast rate and conducted away from the skin through yarn bobbinlinkages between the bottom and top yarns. Water molecules stored at thesurface of the top yarn will evaporate due to flow of air from theenvironment or body heat. The evaporation of liquid into the air absorbsheat energy from the body to help cooling down a persons' bodytemperature.

Currently, there are many fabrics made from a single yarn with high SA:Vratios such as: Coolmax™, Coolpass™, Coolbest™, Cooltouch™, andCooldry™. These fabrics are produced from Y cross sections and othervarious cross sections as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6. Such fabrics alsotend to maximize their SA:V of their yarns in order to maximize theirwicking properties and are hydrophilic in nature.

Unlike these traditional wicking fabrics, which use a single wickingyarn, the present invention uses a two yarn multi SA:V system. Thecombination of two yarns with differing SA:V is applicable to not onlysynthetic fibers, but to various combinations of yarns for example,combinations of synthetic fiber with natural fibers.

To increase the SA:V of a particular yarn, one can also break the yarnstructure by brushing, sanding or peaching. When a yarn is brushed orpeached, the SA:V is increased to help trap more liquid and to increasethe variance of SA:V among the two layers of yarn.

Yarns embedded with a polymer with additional features such as:anti-odor, anti-microbial, and infra-red absorption, does not affect thecooling feature of the present invention so long the bottom yarn (theyarn next to a person's skin) has a higher SA:V than the top yarn (theyarn exposed to the external environment).

The present invention is a multi-ply fabric. The present fabric: coolswhen exposed to a liquid, such as perspiration from an individual'sbody, for example;

is able to wick (transport) perspiration, water or other liquid from anobject such as an individual's skin; is able to absorb a liquid at aweight that is a plurality of the weight of the fabric; efficientlyregulates the evaporation rate and retains a liquid with minimal loss ofthe liquid over an extended period of time; controls moisture release,that is, it provides moisture management; and is reusable, whileretaining all of these characteristics from use-to-use. The presentinvention also is a method of making the fabric having thesecharacteristics.

The side of the fabric to be positioned adjacent to the object to becooled, referred to herein as the back side, is configured to enhancethe transfer of liquid away from the object, such as by wicking, whilethe other side of the fabric that is spaced away from the object isconfigured to slow evaporation. The back side may be relatively moreporous than the front side as a mechanism to facilitate liquid transfer.Further, its wicking characteristics may be optimized, such as by usingfibers made of hydrophobic material and/or with large peripheral surfacearea. On the other hand, the front side may be relatively less porousthan the back side as a mechanism to slow liquid evaporation (bytrapping the liquid, or at least slowing its progression to the outersurface of the fabric). Further, its wicking characteristics may beminimized, such as by using fibers made of absorptive or at leastrelatively hydrophilic material and/or with reduced peripheral surfacearea.

The selected materials and material configurations for the back side andthe front side, when peached as described herein, act in concert toenhance the movement/transportation of liquid from the surface of theobject to the core of the fabric's construction. Cooled liquid eithermoves back toward the object or dwells long enough within the fabric toestablish a sufficient heat gradient to effectively draw heat away fromthe object surface. This results in moisture movement in a controlledmanner that enhances and extends the ability of the fabric to transferheat between the object and the interior of the fabric. In effect, warmliquid adjacent to the surface of the object is drawn away from theobject surface at the back side of the fabric and moved to the frontside, while cooled liquid within the fabric is sufficiently close to theobject at the back side to effect cooling. The regulated slowerevaporation of the liquid from the fabric at the top side provides theextension of time for the cooled liquid within the fabric to act as aheat sink for the object.

While some manner of making a fabric creates interstices that act asfluid pathways, the combination of the material selection and peachingof the fabric as described herein makes that pathway characteristic muchmore substantial, creating a capillary web system that stores andorients the moisture molecules and holds them in suspension until suchtime as the fabric is activated; thus setting the molecules in motionand causing a disorientation of the moisture molecules so that they areinclined to move toward or away from an object to be cooled ormaintained at a temperature. This recycling of moisture to and from thefabric core creates a regulated, controlled, extended evaporativecooling device.

The present invention has been described with respect to variousexamples. Nevertheless, it is to be understood that variousmodifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention as described by the following claims. While embodiments ofthe invention have been described and illustrated, such embodimentsshould be considered illustrative of the invention only. The inventionmay include variants not described or illustrated herein in detail.Thus, the embodiments described and illustrated herein should not beconsidered to limit the invention as construed in accordance with theaccompanying claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of making a multi-ply fabric, the fabrichaving a top side and a back side, said top side being adjacent to anexternal environment when the fabric is in use and said back side beingadjacent to an object to be cooled when the fabric is in use, the methodcomprising: providing a top yarn to form said top side of the fabric,said top yarn having a surface area to volume ratio (SA:V); providing abottom yarn to form said back side of the fabric, said bottom yarnhaving a higher SA:V than said top yarn; and combining said top andbottom yarns together to form a single fabric, said top yarn loopingthrough bobbins in said bottom yarn and said bottom yarn looping throughbobbins in said top yarn so that said top and bottom yarns are linkedand networked to-one-another.
 2. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising weaving said bottom yarn into a terry surface into said backside of the fabric.
 3. The method of claim 1 further comprising peachingsaid bottom yarn.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein weaving comprisescircular knitting with a single sided knitting machine.
 5. The method ofclaim 1 wherein weaving comprises separate yarn inflow knitting with adouble sided knitting machine.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein said topand bottom yarns are each hydrophilic, each yarn having differentcross-sections.
 7. A multi-ply fabric, the fabric having a top side anda back side, said top side being adjacent to an external environmentwhen the fabric is in use and said back side being adjacent to an objectto be cooled when the fabric is in use, the fabric comprising: a topyarn to form said top side of the fabric, said top yarn having a surfacearea to volume ratio (SA:V); a bottom yarn to form said back side of thefabric, said bottom yarn having a higher SA:V than said top yarn;,wherein said top and bottom yarns are combined together to form a singlefabric, said top yarn looping through bobbins in said bottom yarn andsaid bottom yarn looping through bobbins in said top yarn so that saidtop and bottom yarns are linked and networked to-one-another.
 8. Thefabric of claim 7 wherein said bottom yarn is weaved to produce terrysurface into said back side of the fabric.
 9. The fabric of claim 7wherein said bottom yarn is peached.
 10. The fabric of claim 7 whereinsaid top and bottom yarns are each hydrophilic, each yarn havingdifferent cross-sections.